Fate Brave Soul
by E. 0rchid
Summary: Emiya Shirou, a mage with far more power then most, finds himself caught up in a war for more then just the Holy Grail. Fortunately he has his powerful Servant Saber at his side, but it's not who you might think. crossover FF Tactics. ShirouxSaber
1. Prologue: Vengeance

Disclaimer: I do not own Fate/stay night or Final Fantasy Tactics…bummer 'eh?

**Fate/brave soul**

**Prologue: Vengeance**

"To be betrayed by the one you trusted most, and used as a tool. Princess, no Queen, Ovelia please forgive for not being by your side as I should have," a young woman donning a forest green cloak whispered softly as she gazed down at pale figure lying on the chipped grey stone pathway to the small ancient remnants of church forgotten by time. The vibrant green grass around the area grew wildly as several unkempt, several flowers were also in bloom, and all were differing shades of white, pink, and gold. Taking a glance at the crumbling remains of the brown bricked church before her the cloaked woman noticed that the bronze bell that hung just above the demolished entrance way still looked as good as new and still clanged lightly in the gentle breeze of a strong eastern wind.

Slowly bending down the sound of the heavy armor she was wearing, underneath the cloak that enshrouded her face from view, clanked nosily against itself as she squatted over the corpse of a young woman with flowing orange yellow hair which extended down to her back. The young woman's slender face was extremely pale due to blood loss and her once rosy lips were now a pale purple.

Reaching out with a well worn brown leather gauntlet hand the cloaked woman gently slid down the fallen young woman's eyelids over her lifeless amber eyes. Straightening out the deceased young woman's blood red mid length cape embroidered with gold trim, as well as her blood stained white dress which was also embroidered with gold at the seams, the cloaked woman exhaled a sigh that seemed to be laced with sorrow and fatigue.

After folding the woman's pale arms over her chest, were the fatal wound was located, in a burial style fashion the cloaked woman then fished out two silver coins from within the confines of her cloak and placed them softly onto the young woman's eyelids.

"Ferry well my Princess, and dear friend, now you may pass on to the after life and be at peace," the cloaked woman stated as she placed a gentle feather light kiss on princesses pale cheek with her pouty rose pink lips.

"Milady, are you ready to move out?" a faint female voice called out from the other side of the crumbling tan brick wall that separated the cloaked woman from her troops.

Exhaling another sorrowful sigh the cloaked woman cast one last glance at the princess as she walked toward the decimated entrance way that once stood as an arch but was now no more then crumbling brick. Upon reaching the bend the woman immediately came face to face with another young woman.

The woman before her wore a pure white cloak with a royal blue lion insignia on the back, as well as a sterling silver reinforced breast plate, long royal blue skirt which extended down to her calves, a pair of brown leather gauntlets, and a pair of brown leather grieves with silver shin guards. Her hair was an orange yellow color, however slightly duller then princesses, and extended down slightly past her shoulders while framing her slender face nicely. Her eyes were a deep shade of blue, almost black, and her lips were slightly more then thin pink lines on her face.

"Alexandra prepare your chocobo, we're getting ready to move out," the cloaked woman stated as she strode toward a giant black violet feathered bird which looked to be a cross between an ostrich and a toucan due to it's enormous beak.

"Yes Milady," Alexandra answered dutifully with same voice originally heard from behind the wall. After bowing respectfully the young woman ran toward her own giant yellow bird and mounted her brown and orange leather saddle.

The cloaked woman did the same as she grabbed the reins and gently tugged them in order to get the black chocobo to turn around. After the bird did a 180, it was original facing the wall, the cloaked figure came face to face with a seemingly endless number of troops all donning similar battle gear. The men were donning beige colored turtle neck sweaters, similar white capes as the women, a sterling silver breast plate, brown leather grieves and gauntlets, as well as various swords within their brown leather sheaths. Most of the men's hair cuts were almost exactly identical, aside from a select few whose hair grew down to their shoulders, and stopped just above the ears in a bowl cut like fashion.

The women were donning similar a similar out fit as Alexandra, with a similar hairstyle but with varying colors. There were also a select number of troops, such as the Lancers who were doing a full set of silver armor (with dragon like wings on the top of their helmets) above the waist and brown leather pants with silver grieves at the bottom, who wore their own customary uniform. However, everyone stood in a vast green field awaiting the orders of their cloaked leader.

Clearing her throat the cloaked woman prepared to speak in her slightly baritone authoritative voice as she surveyed the troops before her. "It fills my heart with immense joy to have you all gathered here before me!" the cloaked woman began as he voice echoed through out the field.

"All of you know why you are here! You know that your queen has been murdered in cold blood by your ruthless king! All of you know that your king is cold and manipulative! That is why we stand and fight today! To save our land from this corrupt leader, who uses God as nothing more then a tool to control you! On this day, we will take back Ivalice!" the young woman bellowed as she drew out a silver sword by its light blue sapphire handle and thrust it into the air toward the clear blue skies above.

This brought out a loud battle cry in agreement from the troops amassed before her. Smirking the woman continued bellowing, "WE MOVE OUT NOW!" The troops once again cried out in unison and psyched themselves up for the upcoming battle.

"Milady, do you really think we stand a chance against King Hyral?" Alexandra questioned, skepticism only evident in her voice as her face betrayed no emotion.

"We don't have a choice Alexandra, if we don't stand and fight there is no telling what he will do to the people. He's already manipulated and killed the queen, and for him to murder her in cold blood only proves that he is ill-suited to be king," the cloaked woman stated as she whipped the reins causing her chocobo to start moving out at a steady pace.

As Alexandra watched the woman ride off toward the King's castle, troops in toe, she couldn't help but think one last thought. 'I think she has forgotten that we fought side by side, I already know that's she's trying to avenge him as well, but this is ridiculous…I just hope I wont regret my decision later on,' the blue eyed girl thought to herself with a slight frown finding it's way onto her thin lips. Exhaling a tired sigh she immediately whipped her reigns and the giant yellow bird dashed off at a blistering pace to rejoin the rest of the troops.

As they marched the cloaked woman thought she spotted a knight donning a red cloak with a white lion insignia on the back as her troops approached the hill that would have led into King Hyral's Castle. However, just as soon as she blinked he was gone.

'I must be seeing things,' she thought to herself with a slight frown finding its way onto her lips, 'But maybe I'm not.' Stopping abruptly for a moment she considered whether or not to move forward as she brought her thumb up to her lip and nibble at the tip nervously.

"Is their something wrong Milady?" Alexandra inquired, concern evident in her eyes, as she rode up beside the cloaked woman and noticed the frown playing on her lips.

"Ye….no, its nothing. Let's continue," the cloaked figure stated calmly as she doubled the pace and headed over the hill, her troops not far behind. 'I can't have any doubts, that will only get us killed. There's no reason for me to question this, for he has no idea that I'm still alive so there is no way he can be prepared for this. There is no way he can keep me from avenging them,' she thought to herself as her lips became no more then thin lines on her face. However, as soon as she reached the top of the hill she immediately regretted her decision to press forward.

Thousands upon Thousands of troops stood lined up in perfect rectangular formations, sectioned off by their class and skills standing in a vast green field that stood between the giant stone wall that separated her troops from the kingdom beyond its gates. The spot was perfectly suited for the infamous battle about to take place, and soon the yellow green grass would be dyed in blood.

The first formation consisted of hundreds of thousands of knights, far more then the cloaked woman had, with lancers directly behind them and thousands of archers behind them. All of the troops were equipped with the finest weaponry money could by and, by their stance, it was evident that they were all well trained unlike her ragtag group who barely had enough equipment to cover the basics.

"Damn it!" the cloaked figure growled as her troops stopped directly behind her, giving their opponent a false understanding that the cloaked woman was their only opponent. "I didn't expect him to amass so many troops so quickly," the woman muttered to herself as she turned her head and regarded her ragtag group of soldiers.

'It doesn't matter, we must do this,' the woman thought to herself as she did a 180 on her giant black bird and turned to face the opposing force once again. Drawing out her sword from its sheath once again she dramatically thrust it toward sky and cried out the words that would seal her fate.

"CHARGE!"

**To Be Continued**

Well here's my new Fate story, and yes it is a crossover. Now for some this may seem kinda random, but if you look closely Saber does resemble a certain female knight from Final Fantasy Tactics. Anyway, I thought it would be rather interesting so I went for it. Anyway, please review and feel free to flame because critiques are always welcome.


	2. Chapter 1: The Beginning

Disclaimer: I do not own Fate/stay night or Final Fantasy Tactics!

**Fate/brave soul**

**Chapter 1: The Beginning**

"RAH!" a low pitched feminine voice bellowed angrily as a shadowy figure shot out from the depths of a burning building within a flaming city at a seemingly impossible speed. Donning what appeared to be, at least through the pale orange outline formed by the flames around, a silver breast plate, large gauntlets, blue long sleeve cloak or shirt, and a pair of grieves the woman charged forward unsheathing her giant sword which was only visible through the orange outline offered by the flames. Her hair was long and braided in a loose ponytail which whipped behind her wildly as she charged forward.

As she charged forward she was suddenly bombarded by thousands of orange light like objects which she easily deflected with her blade as she continued to charge forward undaunted. Ahead of her stood an outline of a man who appeared to be wearing a giant, slightly gaudy, golden suit of armor. His hair was spike up in a dramatic style and the outline of his face made it appear slender, and yet rugged as well.

One of his hands rested on his hip while the other one simply hung at his side as he seemingly flew toward the feminine figure, looking unfazed at how easily the woman dodged what appeared as streaks of orange light shooting out at her. This was proven further when he merely chuckled darkly in response as he noticed her prepare to attack.

Ducking under another streak of bright orange light the female figure's blade began to glow an eerie pale blue. Raising it above her head as she charged she bellowed, "SPLIT PUNCH!" Suddenly the earth beneath their feet shock violently, as though a miniature earthquake was about to take place, and a giant blue sword, western in design, shot out of the ground from underneath the male figure. The man simply chuckled again in response as the illusionary blade began to shake violently.

The blade itself was an eerie blue and appeared to be almost spectral in its essence, but just as soon as a red spiral like design appeared in its center it exploded in a giant blue light that engulfed nearly a tenth of the city. After the light had faded the female figure, huffing and breathing breathlessly, stared at the massive crater left by the attack.

As if breathing a sigh of relief she eased over and took a deep breath before she heard a familiar dark chuckle. Looking up she barely had enough time to bring her blade up to block her opponent's thin rapier like blade. However the attack hit her with so much force that her feet went through the dense concrete and caused bits and pieces of it to explode into the air while strong winds, created by the attack, whipped around the pair causing an loose articles of clothing or hair to whip wildly in the updraft.

"RAGH!" the woman bellowed once again as she used what was left of her strength to force the man off of her, causing him to flip backward and land on his feet elegantly, before charging him once again with her blade drawn back glowing a pale blue behind her head. "Tch," the male figure scoffed before he raised his blade and charged her back. As soon as the two collided their blades met there were sparks of blue and orange before everything exploded into a giant ball of fire that engulfed the entire city once again.

**Ten Years Later**

"The time has come," a deep masculine voice stated dramatically from within pitch black darkness. "Seven magicians will participate. These "masters" will employ the use of familiars from seven different classes known as "servants" and shall cross blades with one another for a chance to obtain the Holy Grail," the voice stated cryptically as the darkness faded and a pale white light filtered through a set of stained glass windows with the confines of a small church. Within the church stood a man amongst the run down oak wood pews that stood a few feet away from a small wooden altar with a purple cloth rested atop.

In his hands the man held a small candle stick holder with three lit white candles in it. The faint orange light illuminated the man's rugged face, and accentuated his seemingly cold blue eyes. His hair was dark brown and feathered as a few strands hung in front of his face like bangs. He was currently donning a dark blue cloth priest's jacket, black turtle neck shirt, a small gold cross on a thin gold chain, and a pair of blue khaki's.

"That is," he once again stated cryptically with a small smirk on his face, "The war for the Holy Grail."

"However, it appears that it maybe more then a simple war this time around. Hehe."

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"Thou shalt come forth by my side. Thy sword shall control my fate," a young woman donning a short black skirt, red long sleeve turtleneck, black stockings, and brown leather shoes stated as she held a hand outstretched in front of her and the other holding a small book with a black cover. Her hair was raven black and was currently tied into two loose pigtails, tied with two black ribbons, which extended slightly past her shoulder blades. Her face was slender and looked to be an almost model like beauty with pouty lips and sharp well defined features. Her body was also comparable to that of a model's, tall, slender, not skinny, and toned. She was also current standing within the center of an eerily glowing red magic circle which gave her usually snow white skin a red overtone.

"Abiding by the Holy Grail's haven. If thou accedest to this will and reason, then answer me," the young woman continued, completely focused on the task at hand, as her skirt and hair flapped softly in an illusionary wind. "Then hence forth here I am the embodiment of good in the eternal world. I am the disposer of evil in the eternal world. Thee, the seven heavens that bear the great trinity. Come forth from the circle of constraint.

Suddenly a small drop of what appeared to be water dropped from the small space between the young woman's ring and pink fingers falling down onto the magic circle. Once the drop of water hit the ground the circle began to glow an even brighter red before it rose up the young woman's body.

Snapping her eyes open, revealing a pair of emerald orbs, the young woman bellowed, "O, guardian of the balance!" With a blinding bright white red light shot out from the circle illuminating the entire residence in crimson light.

Outside of the mansion a bright light could be seen shinning through every window within the red brick structure. Light also tried to stream through the black shingled roof, but could not quite make. The light was so bright, however, that it illuminated a large portion of the surrounding forest, full of various large trees with dark green leaves, breaking thought the peaceful darkness of the starless night.

Meanwhile, within the residence, the young woman smirked and thought confidently, 'I have, without a doubt, drawn the best card I could.' Suddenly a loud crashing sound echoed through the house from the top floor of the estate followed by a shockwave that knocked the raven haired young woman onto her rump with a sharp gasp.

"What was that?" she said to herself as she cocked an eyebrow in confusion and pushed herself to her feet. Dusting off her skirt she quickly dashed toward the upstairs room where the sound had come from. Running down lengthy red carpeted corridor after red carpeted corridor the young woman finally made it to the room where the crash had sounded from.

Upon reaching the brown oak wood door she immediately twisted the gold doorknob and burst into the room. Sitting there, under a giant crater size hole in the roof which allowed pale rays of moon light to show through, amongst the debris of broken furniture and bits of ceiling sat a man with bronze skin. His hair was snow white, spiky, and slicked back in strange style that added more emphasis to his strong square chin and rugged face. He also wore what appeared to black body armor, with silver trim outlining various muscles, and a royal blue cloak which wrapped around his muscular arms and flared out dramatically at the bottom.

"My, my," he began in a deep sarcastic tone of voice, although still sounding slightly casual. "I…sure got picked by a wonderful master," he continued to muse with a smirk as he opened his eyes revealing a pair of blood red orbs, with royal blue freckles outlining the corners of his irises. "The question is, however, are you worthy of me?"

"Tch," the young woman scoffed with a small frown finding its way onto her lips as she folded her arms over her modest bosom. "I summoned you didn't I?" the young woman questioned with obvious annoyance in concern with her Servant's attitude.

Chuckling lightly to himself the man nodded with a smirk. "It seems you have, but that doesn't mean I have to follow your orders now does it? What's to keep me from killing you and simply signing a contract with another more capable Master?" the man questioned with a malicious smirk as he pushed himself up from the debris and brushed off his blue cloak, ridding it of the dust that had accumulated on it.

"Don't even try it," the young woman muttered through gritted teeth as she held up the back of her left hand displaying three magic symbols.

"Command spells huh? Just remember you only have three of them," the Servant said with a cocky smirk as he rolled his neck and cracked it from side to side. "But there's no need for you to waste them right now," he stated casually as he flipped as hand and sighed tiredly. "Allow me to introduce myself, I am the Servant class Archer."

The young woman's eyes went wide with shock for a moment before she began grumbling to herself. "Archer? I wanted to summon a Saber," she mumbled to herself with a small frown forming on her lips as she furrowed her brow.

"Servant's are only as good as their Master is, you seem capable enough so you shouldn't have to worry about whoever does get Saber. Besides, I'm sure you'll come to find that I can be quite capable," Archer stated with a small smirk, "Just so you know, I heard you." Rin's eyes went wide for a moment but she quickly shook it off.

"I suppose I'll just have to trust your word on that. Well then, I'm going to bed so I would like you to clean up this mess you made," the emerald eyed young woman stated as she turned to leave.

"Although I am a Servant, not a maid or butler, it shall be done as you have requested Master. However, I have a request of my own," Archer stated with a small smile as the raven haired young woman turned around to face him, eyebrow cocked.

"And what would that be?" the young woman inquired with a neutral expression on her face.

"Your name, what is it?" Archer asked with another small smile. The young woman remained silent for a moment, but after exhaling an exasperated sigh she answered.

"Tohsaka, Rin," the young woman stated calmly as she turned to leave again.

"I see...well then Master, goodnight," Archer stated with a smirk as Rin left out the room leaving him to clean up the king size mess that he had created on impact with the house.

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**Flashback**

'_I…I can't feel my legs,' a young man thought to himself as he trudged through the scorched remains of a smoldering city. Where there were once skyscrapers and other buildings there was now nothing more then ash and charred debris. The ground at his feet was as black as tar and ash continued to kick up as he slowly and painfully trudged through the ruins of the city. The heavy rains did not help matters much due to the fact that the damp ash seemed to turn into a mixture of mud and quicksand that made it even harder for the boy to walk._

'_Am I the only one who survived?' he thought to himself as a crimson streak of blood flowed down from the top of his head to his chin where it fell to the ground in small droplets. His short bright orange tinted red hair did an excellent job of concealing the wound, but the blood that streaked down his slightly rounded face was clearly noticeable as it contrasted with his slightly pale skin. The boys amber eyes were locked into place as stared blankly at the scene in front of him almost as if his mind was in an entirely different world._

_His cloths were dirty and frayed at the edges, but the most damaged article of clothing was his slightly oversized forest green goodie with a grey hood which was covered in dirt and ash. His well worn light blue jeans were also frayed at the bottom, and his black and white gym shoes were so torn up and filthy that they barely even served a purpose anymore._

"_I-I can't walk anymore," the young man mumbled to himself as he stumbled over a large piece of blackened brick and spun around falling onto his back. Exhaling a tired sigh he stared blankly at the grey clouds above as rain continued to patter against his face making him feel even cooler then his slightly numb body felt already. After a moment his eyelids began to flutter and for a moment they closed altogether as the boy readily accepted his seemingly imminent death._

_However, just as soon as he felt ready to surrender he heard the sound of foot steps sloshing through that damp ash and slowly opened his eyes. Turning to his side the boy spotted a man donning an all black suit, and a grey dress shirt. His seemingly empty grey eyes held a look of unspoken sorrow and a hint of hope as he gazed down at the young man who simply gazed up at him weakly. The man's face was slender and rugged and his grey tinted black hair was rather long, reaching down slightly past the nape of his neck, and rather messy as his wet bands drooped over his forehead lazily._

_The young man blinked one more time before his eyes closed completely. However, much to his own surprise, he found himself stirring again and as he opened his eyes and the blurriness of his vision cleared he noticed that a pale blue florescent light shown brightly from the ceiling lights above._

_Blinking several more times in order to enhance his vision he gazed up blankly at the ceiling with a hint of sorrow in his amber orbs. He absently took note of the fact that he was lying down in a small bed of some sort, that his head was propted up on a rather comfortable pillow, and that a light brown, almost tan, colored comforter covered his small frame. He could also hear the sounds of various machines beeping and noticed the tube sticking out of his arm. He could also feel the tight bandage wrapped around his head, but none of this really mattered to him._

'_Everyone's dead…I'm the only one who survived,' he thought to himself with a small frown before his eyes closed again and everything went black. Suddenly a blurry object appeared from within the dark depths. It was slightly blurry but could still be made out as a slightly rounded royal blue object._

"_Senpai?" a voice broke through the darkness. "Emiya senpai?" the voice called out again causing the object to disappear and the darkness to fade out as pale rays of sunlight streamed through illuminating the scene._

**End Flashback**

Blinking his eyes wearily a young man pushed himself up as his vision sharpened and the last remnants of sleep faded like the clearing of fog from his mind.

Opening his amber eyes wide he turned to face a young woman with long violet hair that extended down past her shoulder blades. A small portion of her hair was tied back with a pink bow, while another part hung in front of her face as long bangs that nearly concealed her lavender eyes from view. Her face was slender with cute school girl look. As far as clothing she was currently donning a mustard yellow button up vest, a white dress shirt with red trim on the sleeves underneath, a long coal black skirt that extended slightly past her knees, white socks that extended up slightly past her shins, and a pair of brown leather dress shoes. All in all the outfit flattered her petite frame, and did not draw as much emphasis to her well endowed bosom.

"Good morning Senpai," the girl stated with a small smile as she brushed a few stray strands of her violet tress away from her face. The sunlight streaming through the windows seemed to give her an ethereal glow, almost as if she was no more then a fading dream.

"Uhh…," the young man answered intelligently as he gazed around his surroundings. A cleanly polished oak wood floor underneath him, a small recess in the wall containing a scroll and a porcelain vase containing a Sakura tree branch with budding cherry blossoms, and clean white walls with an oak wood panel running across with square holes where the pale rays of sunlight filtered from surrounded him.

'Yep, I definitely feel asleep in the dojo again,' the young man thought to himself with a weary grin as he gazed down and noticed that he was in fact still wearing his modestly oversized black gi and white hakama pants with his shinai off to his side. 'And they still smell like sweat,' the young man continued to think to himself as he pinched a piece of fabric and brought it up to his nose, sniffed, and then quickly wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"There's still some time left for you to get ready, but it is unusual for you to oversleep," the lavender eyed young woman stated with concern evident in her voice as she snapped the red head out of his thoughts and drawing his attention back toward her.

"Yeah, I must have fallen asleep practicing katas," the young man replied with a sheepish chuckle as he scratched the nape of his neck. "I guess I must have laid down for a moment to catch my breath and never got back up. Sorry about that."

"Don't be," the young woman stated softly adding a warm smile. "I'd be happier if you would oversleep from time to time. After all, it would make it worthwhile for me to take care of you."

Staring up blankly at the violet haired girl, for only a moment, the young man's lips soon quirked up into small smile as she pushed himself off of the ground and dusted off his gi before doing some minor stretches. "Anyway, let's get ready for breakfast. I don't know about you but I'm starving," the young man stated as his stomach growled in agreement causing him to chuckle and blush a light pink self-consciously.

"I can take care of breakfast," the young woman responded quickly, sounding almost eager to prepare the morning meal, "so please take your time." "Also, Fujimura-sensei will be here shortly, so it might be a good idea for you change into something else," the lavender eyed girl to chuckle lightly as the young man inspected himself once again with a slight frown finding it's way onto his lips.

"That's a good idea," the young man replied with a small smile. "Fuji-nee will knock me through the roof if she sees me like this." With that said the two parted to focus on their separate task.

'I go to the dojo a lot, especially when I got mad at dad. I guess pretty soon I was going there almost every other day for stress release exercises. I go to the dojo even more since my father, Emiya Kiritsugu, passed away five years ago,' the young man thought to himself as he walked through the small mansion sized house.

Taking a look around at the various objects placed throughout the corridors, as well as the off white walls and the well polished wood floor at his feet, the young man found himself shaking his head. 'To think that dad could live in a place like this and never have a single date. I remember when he was training me I would often ask why he didn't go out once in a while instead of torturing me,' the young man continued to think to himself with a soft chuckle and a warm smile in fond remembrance.

'When he passed away I, his adopted son, inherited just about everything. Although all the complicated stuff was taken care of by dad's acquaintance, Mr. Fujimura,' Shirou thought to himself as he stepped into the bathroom and slipped off his dirty training gear before turning on the hot water and stepping into the steaming shower.

After his shower the amber eyed young man went through the rest of his usual morning routine and put on his school uniform, which consisted of a pair of light brown colored khaki pants, a white long sleeve tee shirt with navy blue sleeves, and brown almost mustard colored jacket with brown trim on the wrist.

Scooping up his dirty cloths the young man then deposited them into the all white laundry machine and stared the cycle. Slamming the lid shut and sighing to himself the young man was about to head toward the kitchen before a voice squawked throughout the house.

"Shirou!" the voice echoed throughout the entire house as said young man made his way to the kitchen/dining room. Sliding open the paper door Shirou was greeted by a slightly upset woman with short light brown hair that reached down past the nape of her neck. Her face was slightly rounded, but still slender and adult like. Unfortunately her dark brown eyes seemed to portray a child like innocence which contrasted sharply with the rest of her face. The woman was currently clothed in a green spaghetti strap dress with a yellow long sleeve shirt with thin horizontal black stripes underneath.

"You're late and I got tired of waiting for you," the woman stated regretfully with a frown playing at her full lips. She already had a white bowl of white rice in one of her hands and a pair of chopsticks in the other.

'Another of my dad's old acquaintances,' Shirou thought to himself with a small smile as he stepped into the room, sliding the door shut behind him, and took a seat at the well used dark brown birch wood table in front of him. "Sorry I'm so late," the amber eyed young man stated with a sheepish chuckle as Taiga eyed him through slanted eyes. Meanwhile Shirou's stomach growled again as he gazed upon the spread set out before him as he thought, 'Wow, Sakura really goes all out when she prepares a meal.'

"You know Sakura-chan, you spoil Shirou far too much. He's going to start taking advantage of you if you don't stop," Taiga stated as she began to woof down her bowl of rice as while continuing to talk to the violet haired girl who was currently preparing a bowl of rice for Shirou.

"I'm not spoiling him, Senpai is just tired that's all," Sakura replied with a small smile gracing her lips as she prepared a bowl of rice for herself.

"Besides," Shirou started with a frown as he began to consume his bowl of rice at an unbelievable pace, "You're the one who comes over here for breakfast and dinner. I think you're the one trying to take advantage here."

"Well the only reason I'm here is because I can't simply leave you alone by yourself. What kind of guardian would I be if I just let you run wild," Taiga shot back in her defense as she picked up a piece of salmon and gobbled it down. "You know I made a promise to your father that I would make sure that you would grow up to be a splendid adult. That's why it's my duty to…" she tried to continue before she was rudely cut off.

"Wow Sakura-chan!" Shirou exclaimed with a broad smile on his face as he set his bowl of miso soup down and regarded the girl with eyes full of amazement. "It seems you've finally mastered the art of making miso soup, this is excellent," he critiqued as he picked the bowl up again and took another sip.

"Well that's because you taught me so well, Senpai," Sakura responded with a pink tinge spreading across her cheeks as she continued to eat.

Meanwhile a small vein in Taiga's head started throbbing as she listened to them completely ignore her. Frowning slightly, and then snarling she decided she couldn't take it anymore as the two teens continued their casual conversation. "HEY LISTEN TO ME DAMN IT!" she cursed but the teens continued to ignore her. Grumbling to herself she simply ate the rest of her meal, woofing down as much food as she possibly could.

A few minutes late Taiga was rushing out the house bellowing, "I'M LATE, I'M LATEEEE!" as she ran through the front gate and down the empty street at an incredible speed, kicking up a giant cloud of dust behind her.

Meanwhile Sakura and Shirou were busy washing and drying the morning's dishes. "Fujimura-sensei has been under a lot of pressure these past few days, hasn't she?" Sakura inquired trying to make small talk as she rolled up her sleeves and dunked her hands into the soapy water.

"I guess, oh well," Shirou stated with a small smile and a shrug as he dried another bowl and set it on the dish rack to dry with the others.

"_Many victim's of last nights gas spill still remain in critical condition,"_ sounded from television in the background which was currently displaying the early morning news. _"According to the Fuyuki Police Dept. the cause of the spills is still unknown at this time."_

"Again? There seems to be a lot of those gas spills in Shinto lately," Shiro stated with a frown forming on his face as he put another bowl on the rack.

"Well Senpai we're done. Are you ready to head to school now?" Sakura inquired as she rolled down her sleeves and took of her pink apron.

"Sure, lets go," Shirou stated as he rolled down his sleeves and put the dish towel up.

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'It's hard to believe that I've known Sakura-chan this long,' Shirou thought to himself as he stole a glance at the lavender haired girl. Both were currently walking down an empty street past several identical houses. 'Even though she's the sister of a friend of mine I can't believe our relationship has been the way it is for so long. After I injured myself I was really appreciative when she came by to help me with the chores. Even so she comes by almost everyday to help me now a days,' Shirou continued to think to himself as they came to a cross walk and waited for the light to read walk. Suddenly a police car flew past with it's serine's blaring.

"What's happening senpai?" Sakura inquired as yet another police car flew by.

"I don't know," Shirou stated with a troubled expression on his face was he watched the cars head down the street. "Don't worry about it though, Sakura-chan."

"Alright," Sakura responded as the light turned green and they crossed the street.

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Upon arriving at Homura Academy Shirou immediately headed to the Student Government Office where his long time friend Issei Ryudo was currently waiting for his arrival. His raven haired friend had been waiting patiently reviewing some forms as he rocked in a cheap grey metal folding chair when Shirou popped his head through the door.

Upon arriving at Homura Academy Shirou immediately headed to the Student Government Office where his long time friend Issei Ryudo was currently waiting for his arrival. His navy blue haired friend had been waiting patiently reviewing some forms as he rocked in a cheap grey metal folding chair when Shirou popped his head through the door.

"Sorry I'm late," Shirou apologized with a goofy grin as he walked over toward an old heating system and pulled out his tools.

"Don't worry about it. As always, I appreciate your help," Issei stated as he looked up from the forms and corrected his sleek frames. The blue eyed boy seemed to be lost in his work due to the fact that he also had his laptop on.

"Ah don't worry about it," Shirou stated as he dug out a screw driver from his tool box.

"Unfortunately we have trouble with the distribution of school funds when it comes to clubs," Issei continued with a small sigh. "And the culture clubs are always treated poorly. One big problem is the shortage of stoves in the winter. Anyway, do you think you can fix it?" Issei inquired as he stopped typing and looked at Shirou skeptically.

"Ah, it's probably just a short-circuit problem with the wires," Shirou stated dismissively as he looked over the machine. "It should last this winter if we replace the wires with new ones."

"You're good Emiya," Issei stated with a smile as he pushed his glass back up his nose, "I'm happy I could count on you."

"Issei, you know you use some weird Japanese sometimes," Shriou stated with a small smile as he ran a hand over the machine. "Anyway, would you mind if I had a little privacy so I could concentrate," Shirou stated as he looked up his friend who simply smiled in response.

"Of course, it must be a delicate process. I won't bother you," Issei responded as he packed up his belongings and left the room.

"I don't think it's much of a delicate process," Shirou said to himself with a smirk as soon as Issei left the room, "In fact this shouldn't take more then a minute." Stretching out his hand Shirou focused intensely on the machine before him. Closing his eyes he visualized the machine in front of him and thought, 'Trace on.' Suddenly a series of magic circuits lit up within him glowing a pale green. 'Basic composition defined…okay!' he thought to himself as his eyes snapped open.

"Here we go," Shirou mumbled to himself as he furrowed his brow and concentrated. Suddenly a green wire outline of the machine appeared next to the original. Within seconds the outline materialized into an exact replica of the original machine. 'Now to stabilize it,' he thought to himself as he licked his lips and concentrated even harder.

After a few seconds of this Shirou was confident that the machine would be ready for use. 'Now they'll never have to buy a new one again. That's what I call a life-time warranty,' he thought to himself confidently with a smirk as he turned his attention toward the now useless original machine.

"Now to get rid of you," Shirou said to himself as he rose to his feet and outstretched a hand, palm open, and began to mutter a few words. "Strip away the ground with glistening blades! Bolt!" Shirou bellowed in a low voice. No sooner had he muttered the words then a small bolt of blue lighting shot out nowhere and struck the useless machine completely disintegrating it.

Dusting off his hands Shirou smirked to himself as he collected his unused tools and headed out of the room. 'While I've always had a talent for grasping and imagining the internal structure of an object, being able to create an exact replica is something that I'm sure no other magician could do. As far as basic spells are concerned I've already mastered the relatively useful ones, and even know quite a few advanced spells. I guess it's like father always said, I just have a knack for sorcery.'

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"I'm done Issei," Shirou shouted as he ran up to catch up with his friend.

"Ah, that's great," Issei stated as he came to a stop and turned around to wait for his friend to catch up.

"It's almost time for homeroom," Shirou stated as he fell in step with Issei.

"Really? Sorry man," Issei apologized, "I suppose I would fail as a friend if I made you tardy for homeroom by asking you for a favor."

Shirou merely chuckled in response before both boys stopped dead in their tracks. Before Shirou was the schools number one idol Tosaka Rin, and she simply strode past him without one glace in the duo's direction. Shirou watched her head toward homeroom and Issei opened his mouth to comment.

"Don't tell me you're gunning for that Tohsaka too," Issei stated with a hint of disdain in his tone.

"W-W-What!? What do you mean gunning for Tohsaka!?" Shirou exclaimed in shock as he turned to face Issei eyes wide and mouth agape. "Who would?" he immediately countered as he tried to calm himself.

"Tohsaka Rin, class 2-A. Beautiful looks, a good head," Issei began spouting of random facts as he turned and headed toward homeroom with Shirou in toe. "In fact you never even hear bad rumors about her. She's pretty much the idol for most of the male students. But to tell you the truth I don't like her," Issei stated as he took a seat in an old wooden desk latching his black leather school case to the side.

"Why is that?" Shirou inquired as he stopped at his friend's desk as looked down at him cocking an eyebrow.

"It's not something specifically, but anyway, it's just me not accepting her. You know, just forget I ever said anything about it," Issei stated calmly as he closed his and folded his hands together.

Shirou looked down at his friend with a look of concern in his eyes, but walked off to take his seat at his desk in the back of the classroom. No sooner had he done this then Taiga made her entrance.

Seconds later Taiga came barreling into the room kicking up a cloud of dust behind her before losing her footing a falling head over heals onto the floor with a loud thud and a smack. She then laid there on the floor motionless.

"Whoa, do you think she's dead?" one of the male students inquired from his desk.

"Nah, try poking her," another suggested.

"Huh? No, just do "that"," a female student stated.

"Yeah, let's do "that"!" another student shouted in agreement.

"Alright 1, 2, 3! WAKE UP TIGER!" a majority of the students shouted simultaneously.

Taiga immediately shot up and shouted, fangs bared, "DON'T CALL ME TIGER!" while shaking a fist vehemently in the air.

Meanwhile Shirou simply sat at his desk with his head in his hands looking mortified as he released and exasperated sigh. 'This is getting a little out of hand,' he thought to himself as he looked up to see Taiga about strangle one of the male students who had called her Tiger again.

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At noon, while other students ate their lunch, Rin made her way to the roof with an invisible Archer right behind her. "So have you been able to detect the movement of other servants?" Rin inquired as she made her way over to the metal fence that overlooked the school grounds.

"Yes I have," Archer stated with a smirk as he phased into his material form. "Several of them are within the city itself, while Beserker and his Master reside on the outskirts of the city near the mountains. It is my humble suggestion that we take care of them last," Archer stated as he looked toward Rin who looked as if she was contemplating something.

After a moment Rin spoke up asking, "Have all the Servant's been summoned?"

"No, Saber has yet to be summoned and I cannot determine who his or her Master is as of yet. Upon their summoning I will be able to locate them," Archer stated calmly as Rin continued to stare out at the school grounds through the metal fence.

"I must say that you were not at all what I expected when I summoned an Archer," Rin stated with a small smile.

"I told you I could be quite reliable," Archer stated with a predatory smirk.

Rin simply nodded in response before she turned around and headed toward the door. "Come on, well go check some things out," Rin said as she disappeared down the stairs while Archer faded out again.

Meanwhile, Shirou and Issei was busy enjoying lunch in the Student Government office.

"Hmm, I'll take one of these," Issei stated as he picked up a meatball out of Shirou's bentou.

"Okay, but isn't your bentou a little plain?" Shirou inquired as he looked down at Issei's bentou with a frown. "I understand that you're the successor of a temple, doesn't that mean you're forbidden to eat meat?"

"It's not an anachronism like that," Issei responded dismissively as Shirou poured himself a cup of tea. "It's just my father's taste," he stated with a small prayer before he bit down on the meatball and began chewing. After swallowing he poured himself a cup of tea and cleared his throat. "Anyway, did you hear what happened in the second chome (area designation in Japan) this morning?" Issei inquired as he sipped his steaming cup of tea.

Images from earlier that morning flashed in Shriou's head as he set down his chopsticks and regarded his friend with concern evident in his eyes. "Oh yeah, what was that all about?" he asked.

"It was a homicide," Issei stated simply as he took another sip of his tea. "I don't know any of the specifics, but they say it was a break-in robbery. A four member family was assaulted. The weapon used sounded really odd, apparently some kind of long spear or samurai sword. There was also a break in at the museum, and apparently a very valuable stone was stolen. No one knows what it looks like since it was top secret, but apparently someone knew enough about it to find it and steal it after butchering the night watch men," Issei stated as he took another sip of tea. "Gas spill incidents seem to be happening everyday in Shinto, we have sword testing killer, a homicidal thief, and curfew is going to get even high..."Issei was about to finish before Shirou slammed his hands on the table knocking over their respective lunches. "Is there something wrong Shirou?"

"So did they get the suspect in that homicide incident at least?" Shirou inquired with concern etched into his features.

"No," Issei responded darkly causing Shirou to gasp. "Don't even think that they're going to get him; they don't even have any clues." Looking in his friend's direction he noted the pained expression on the young man's face. "Are you okay Emiya-kun?" Issei inquired as Shirou raised his head to met Issei's navy blue eyes.

"I'm fine," Shirou stated with weary grin, "I guess I just got surprised hearing this all of a sudden."

"Sorry," Issei offered by way of apology.

"For what? Don't worry about it," Shirou stated as he cleaned up the mess he made by slamming his hands on the table.

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After school Shirou hopped on the bus and headed toward the convince store where he worked at. Unfortunately he was early so he decided to take a stroll around a familiar spot.

'Wow, this place is still the same,' he thought to himself as he walked down a narrow path full of dead and blackened trees. 'Nothings changed,' he continued to think to himself as he sat down on a wooden bench. 'Why is it like this? I can't accept this Dad. Why is it so hard?'

**Flashback**

"_That's a difficult question," Kiritsugu stated as he continued to fan himself with a paper fan. He was currently donning a navy blue kimono as was a young Shirou who sat munching on a piece of watermelon watching the fireflys and looking at the night sky. "What you're saying is that you want to save everything, and why is that hard?" Kiritsugu inquired as he continued to fan himself._

"_Dad you saved me when I was near-death," Shirou stated taking a moment to stop eating his watermelon, "So can't you do the same for everyone?"_

"_Saving one person means not being able to save another," Kiritsugu stated with a solemn expression on his face._

'_But I have the power to save everyone,' Shirou thought defiantly as he went back to eating his watermelon without another word._

**End Flashback**

'I know; I can understand what dad meant to say,' Shirou thought to himself as he hefted a stack of wooden boxes through the store, 'However, I simply cannot accept it. Innocent people are dying everyday, and no matter how hard you try only a few of the many are ever saved.' 'That's so unfair,' he continued to think to himself as he laid a few bottles of whine on racks within a freezer. "It's not right that not everyone can be saved. So I…I will use this power I have and I will create an ideal world were no one has to suffer," Shirou thought to himself, reaffirming his resolve, as he sat the last bottle onto the shelf. Taking off his apron and collecting his belongings Shirou slipped back on his beige school jacket and headed toward the door while saying his goodbyes. He then headed down the street on his way home.

As he continued on his trek through the suburbs on his way home he noted that no one was outside. "I guess that makes sense, especially with everything that's been going on lately," Shriou said to himself as he looked down another empty street. However, upon reaching the final leg of his journey he ran into a strange figure. Dressed in a purple coat, matching hat, a pair of violet boots, and white scarf the little girl that stood before him had a creepy angelic quality about her. Her long snow white hair extended down to small of her back and her pale skin was almost as white as her hair. Said girl stood before him with a warm smile on her face and began to approach him.

Briskly walking past him she whispered a few words with the same smile still on her lips. "If you don't hurry up and summon your servant, you're going to die, Oniichan." With that said she continued quietly on her way down the street leaving a very puzzled Shirou in her wake.

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"Really Shirou-kun! A student like you shouldn't be out this late a night," Taiga stated in a reprimanding tone as she woofed down a bowl of rice.

"I had to work though!" Shirou countered as Sakura handed him a bowl of rice.

"You probably did someone else's too, right?" Taiga countered back with a feral grin.

"If someone's going to benefit from it why not!?" Shirou snapped causing the grin to fall off of Taiga's face.

"God Shirou, I don't know if I should call you a kind person or someone with a loser's attitude," Taiga muttered offhandedly, "Do you think you're Kiritsugu-san or something?" "Why are you always like this?"

"Um, excuse me Fujimura-sensei but has senpai always been like this?" Sakura inquired.

Taiga looked over at the frowning boy and watched him munch on some egg. "Yeah he's always been the type who can't leave a troubled person behind, and Shirou's particularly precocious. He even titled his elementary school essay "I want to be a protector of justice"."

"Wow, that's wonderful!" Sakura exclaimed with a clap of her hands and a warm smile.

"Yeah it's fine for a kid to say that, but unfortunately Shirou still serious about it even now," Taiga stated with a bored expression on her face as she waved a hand dismissively. "You know that's one of the reasons why I worry about…" Taiga started before Shirou got in her face.

"You know I'm going to get really angry if you keep saying stuff like that!" he hissed which in turn caused the older woman to back down in shock. As she tired to back away she bumped into some of the rolled up posters behind her.

"Hmm, what are those?" Shirou inquired forgetting about his outburst.

"Oh these?" Taiga inquired as she picked up one of the posters, got up, and rolled it out. "Just some of the extra poster's I got," she stated with a grin as Shirou observed it. The poster featured three men in either a sailor's uniform, military garb, or air force attire respectively and read "Self Defense Club! Now Recruiting!". "Anyway," Taiga said drawing Shirou's attention away from the poster for a moment, "Since I had extra I thought I'd give one to you! You know since you're into kendo and guns and stuff. I figured you might like it."

Shirou immediately snatched the poster out of her hands and rolled it back up as his body shook with rage. "I don't want something like this! Just because I practice kendo and using firearms doesn't mean that I'm willing to take it any further then that! It's just a hobby!" he snapped as he tried to bring the poster down on Taiga head only to miss as she ducked and scooped up another silver poster. Taiga immediately countered by bringing her poster down on his head, but Shirou parried as lashed out again. Unfortunately Tagia was able to parry the strike, leaving Shirou open to attack, and brought her poster down on his head with a loud "DONG!".

The poster in Shirou's hands fell to the floor, Sakura gasped, Taiga smirked triumphantly, and Shirou simply glared at the older woman in disgust. "You're ten years too early to hit a Kendo five-dan like me! Even if you are skilled, you're still not good enough to beat me!" Taiga stated with a feral grin.

"That's not the problem…" Shirou muttered as he tried to contain his rage while a vein atop his head began to throb. "What's wrapped inside of that poster?" he inquired as his body started shaking with anger.

"OH! Sorry about that, I forgot this was the iron version I got for my store points!" Taiga exclaimed with wide eys causing Sakura to gasp again.

"YOU MEAN ITS FREAKIN' METAL!" Shirou bellowed as his eyes went wide.

"Senpai are you alright?" Sakura inquired as she watched the exchange with concern evident on her face. Needless to say the rest of the night was pretty subdued affair.

After dinner Shirou and company said there farewells and Taiga set out to walk Sakura home. Shirou then trekked across the back yard and entered the old warehouse turned firing range where he pulled a Walther WA 2000 sniper rifle with an attached AN/PVS-4 night scope from it's holding rack and prepared for some target practice.

"Alright, line up the scope," he muttered to himself as he closed one eye and took sight through the scope aiming at distant bull's-eye . "Alright, remember what dad thought you. Make sure your aim is steady and hold your breath," Shirou whispered to himself as fired off a round. The bullet whizzed through the air and struck the 50 point mark on the bull's-eye just outside of the center.

"Darn," he muttered as he took sight again.

**Flashback**

'_Dad told me a long time ago, that I was actually a magician, and an extremely talented one at that. Although he never could understand how I got to be so talented, although some times he said he had an excellent guess, but he did tell me that I had the potential to use true magic.' Shirou thought to himself as the memory of his father and himself walking down a bridge together played through his head. In the water were several rectangular lanterns that glowed warmly in the cool night. 'He was telling the truth. Having learned numerous mystical subjects he fought against society's structure and problems and was a true born magician who helped people. I admired the person he was, and to me he was like a hero. He was also someone I aspired to be like, and a role model concerning how I would use my socery.'_

'_He always regretted having to teach me how to fight, and how to use various weapons. However, no matter how much I rebelled against it and no matter how much he hated to teach me he told me it was absolutely necessary. He never told me why exactly, but he said I would understand someday. Even so, I always view training as a way to enhance my magic so that I would be better prepared for dealing with the world when it came time for me to take action.'_

'_With this power that I have inherited I think I'll be able to see that his dream becomes a reality. He always told me that there was no spell that I couldn't master. So I'll become the greatest magician that ever lived. I'll become so skilled with my art, and mastery of weaponry that I won't ever have to kill anyone. I'm not naïve enough to think that I won't have to fight, but I will be able to protect everyone. The intense training father put me through was more then enough to ensure this.'_

**End Flashback**

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"So, do you think any of them know where we're at?" Rin inquired as she stood on the roof of a skyscraper looking down at the night scene below. She was currently donning the same outfit she had worn when she summoned Archer who also stood at her side sporting his usual garments. "I know that Caster probably would, but I think she might be the least of our concern," she said and Archer simply nodded his head in response.

"Yes, but why is that we do not act right now?" Archer questioned as he cocked an eyebrow in confusion. "I already know where the other Master's are so we could attack at any given time," Archer stated with a small frown playing at his lips.

"I know we could have, but we should wait and see what their moves will be for a moment. We will attack soon enough, but for right now we need to devise a plan," Rin stated as she leapt off the roof with Archer in toe.

"I suppose you are correct," Archer stated with a frown still on his face as they hovered above the city for a moment. "Even so, we're going to have to act quickly. If we don't there's no telling what could happen."

"I agree, and we'll prepare for an attack once we get a fully understand of what we're up against. While you do have the ability to discern their location you can't determine how powerful they are so it's best to simply spy on them when we get the chance and then form an attack plan if possible," Rin stated as they started on their descent toward the city.

"As you wish," Archer replied as his face was once again set in its stoic mask.

**To Be Continued**


End file.
